“I didn’t expect a win straight away!” - Giulio Ciccone stuns on return to racing at Clasica San Sebastian 2025
Cycling
After more than two months out of competition, Giulio Ciccone couldn’t have scripted a better comeback. The Lidl-Trek climber soared to victory at the 2025 Clasica San Sebastián with a searing counterattack on the final climb, outfoxing UAE Team Emirates - XRG’ Jan Christen and Isaac del Toro in the closing kilometres of a race that saw some of the sport’s biggest names on the offensive.
“I didn’t expect a win straight away!” Ciccone said at the finish, still catching his breath from the 230-kilometre war of attrition. “I knew my numbers were good, and I’d worked really well with the team. But two months without racing is a lot — you never know how the legs will respond.”
Respond they did. After splitting the race with Del Toro on the Erlaitz climb with 35km to go, Ciccone rode with poise and patience, managing the cooperation with his breakaway companion even as the group behind — including Primoz Roglic — began to stir. When Christen bridged across inside the final 10km and immediately launched a stinging attack, Ciccone held his nerve.
“I had one moment of doubt when Del Toro and I were alone on the flat,” he admitted. “There was still a long way to go, and it was tempting to ease off. But we kept pressing. Then when Christen came back, I thought, ‘This is where it blows up.’ I expected Del Toro to attack, but he started to fade. So I followed Christen, and when the moment came, I countered.”
That counterattack, launched just before the crest of the Murgil-Tontorra, proved decisive. Ciccone opened up a slender gap over Christen and plunged into the descent with a handful of seconds and total commitment. Despite Christen’s best efforts to reel him back on the twisting run-in to San Sebastián, Ciccone held firm to take his second win of the season — and his first since the Tour of the Alps opener back in April.
“I was scared Christen would come back — I couldn’t see him, there weren’t any straight sections to judge the gap,” Ciccone said. “Only in the final 500 metres did I finally let myself believe it. Then I just enjoyed it — this is one of my favourite races.”
It was a masterclass in race craft from the Italian, who capitalised on UAE’s aggressive tactics and showed both patience and timing to seal the twelfth victory of his career — and arguably one of his most satisfying.
Kieran WoodDeputy Editor-in-Chief
Kieran Wood is a sports journalist based in Wales and has been active in journalism since 2022. He regularly contributes to DartsNews.com and CyclingUpToDate.com, where he covers professional cycling and darts. In cycling, his work includes liveblogs from major races, including the Tour de France, the Giro d’Italia, and La Vuelta a España, alongside race reports and analysis. He has also conducted interviews with professional riders.
His reporting spans the full racing calendar, from one-day classics to stage races, with a focus on accurate, real-time coverage and clear contextual analysis. For statistics, results, and historical context, he regularly uses resources such as ProCyclingStats. To support reporting on rider activity and training context where relevant, he also references Strava.
In his work, Kieran places strong emphasis on careful sourcing, editorial accuracy, and updating articles as new, verified information becomes available.
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